In Anima Veritas
by Lady Avotil
Summary: Dartz is given a second chance and everything is alright. Until he meets a certain teen wizard named Harry Potter...PostOotP; Good!Dartz; OotP and Harry-tachi bashing!
1. Chapter 1

Hi guys!^_^

*hides behind very big shield* I know I promised and update of my other story – "What doesn't kill you makes you stranger" – but it will have to wait at least until the middle of September.

Now, onto this. I have recently been going through some of my older files and discovered this delightful little story buried in one of my mum's folders. What it was doing there, I will never know. After reading through it and making a few corrections grammar- and spelling-wise I decided to post it. If you want me to post the other chapters I've written for this story, then please inform me in a review.^_^

_**VERY IMPORTANT!:**_

_**Background Information: **_

_**Yu-Gi-Oh:**_ In this story, what happened during the Waking the Dragons Arc is almost completely the same as in canon, except that Dartz was sent back to the mortal world and he did not influence Raphael, Valon and Alistair's lives so that they join him later on. He did not cause the cruise ship Raphael was on to crash into that hurricane, he did not cause the fire in the church that got Valon sent into Juvie and he did not kidnap Alistair's little brother.

_**Harry Potter:**_ The story takes place after 5th year and the events of "Order of the Phoenix". I unfortunately did not change Sirius' fate, so that lovable guy still dies. The only difference is that all of Harry's friends more or less turn their back on him, blaming him for the entire Department of Mysteries fiasco.

Well, that's all for now. Hope you enjoy reading it and I hope to see your opinion of it in reviews!^_^

_**YGOxHP**_

_**Chapter 1: Meeting**_

Dartz sighed as he walked down one of the many streets of a suburb near London called Surrey. His eyes – of an unusual yet beautiful golden colour – swept from one side of the street to the other and back. All the houses were the same, with the only difference being the state of each house's garden. Unusually light blue hair was softly rustled by the wind as a small, yet welcome breeze played with the golden-eyed man's waist-length hair.

After Dartz had been reborn into the mortal world after the entire Orichalcos affair had ended, the Atlantean King had gone to apologize to his three former Swordsmen: Alistair, Valon and Raphael. After a very long discussion, Raphael and Valon had decided to stay with Dartz, whilst Alistair had announced his wish to look for his brother, Mikey. Dartz still couldn't believe that Valon and Raphael had forgiven him, much less stayed with him. They had decided that a nice and peaceful break from anything and everything supernatural would be nice and this is how they had ended up buying the house on n5 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey.

Today was one of the hottest days this summer and since Valon was napping and Raphael was on a date (which had surprised both Dartz and Valon) the former president of the mysterious Paradias Company had decided to take a walk. As his feet subconsciously carried him towards the park, the blue-haired man thought about the two months that had passed since the Great Leviathan had been sealed away forever and his sanity had been returned to him. A small smile appeared on his face as he thought about the close relationship he had developed with Valon and Raphael during that small time period – they were like a family, now that he thought about it.

Family. It was something that he had expected to never have again after spending the last 10 000 years alone. He had spent a good deal of time talking with his father, Ironheart, and catching up with his daughter, Chris. He had been saddened when he had found out that only he would be going back to the mortal world and would be in that way separated from his family. But he had found family in the faces of Valon and Raphael, the two people he had put through the worst of trials. Yet they had stayed with him after all their ordeals…He was extremely grateful for that. Family was something that he had valued a lot when he was the King of Atlantis…and what he had forgotten under the dark influence of the Orichalcos. It seemed that family was something that the boy living in n4 Privet Drive also hadn't know for a long time.

The boy in question was, in comparison to him and Valon and Raphael, a midget, scrawny, as if he hadn't been eating properly in a long time, and had the messiest and darkest hair the Atlantean had ever seen. It was the boy's eyes, though, that stood out the most: eyes the colour of emeralds. Or at least Dartz thought that they should have been emerald green in colour. The first time he had seen the boy was when he had been obviously picked up by the fat man and his wife from somewhere. Strangely enough, besides a trunk there had also been a cage with a snowy-white owl sitting in it. When the boy had briefly turned around before entering the house, the teenager's eyes had crossed his. The boy's eyes had been an extremely dull, green colour and held a sadness that was only reflected in the eyes of a tortured soul. Seeing that had, in turn, saddened the Atlantean greatly – a person in the middle of his teens was not supposed to have such a look in their eyes.

Dartz abruptly stopped under the shade of one of the trees in the park when he saw the boy he had been thinking about sitting on one of the swings, alone. The teen's head was bowed, his fringe covering the probably downcast eyes. Suddenly he heard a group of teenagers laughing as they approached the boy. Dartz recognized one of them as the son of the fat man living in n4 Privet Drive. It appeared as if the boys were saying their farewells, one of them mimicking punching someone. Once only the fat boy was left, the teenager Dartz had been thinking about stood up from the swings and walked over to the other boy.

"So, who've you been beating up tonight?", he asked once he reached the fat boy, "Another ten-year-old? I know you did Mark Evans two nights ago –

"He was asking for it" the fat boy snarled.

"Oh yeah?"

"He cheeked me"

"Yeah? Did he say you look like a pig that's been taught to walk on its hind legs? 'Cause that's not cheek, _Big D_, that's true" **(1)**

Dartz chuckled. The boy was quite witty…and right. The fat boy DID look like a pig walking on its hind legs. But then he frowned. Surely if those boys were living together in the same house, they wouldn't talk like this. Teasing was simply that – teasing. But the way the two boys looked at each other made the blue-haired man's frown deepen – they were looking at each other with pure hatred. What was the history between them? Looking up from his thoughts, he noticed that he had missed a part of the conversation. It seemed that now the tables had been turned and the fat boy was "teasing" the other one.

"Come and help me, Dad! Mum, come and help me! He's killed Cedric! Dad, help me! He's going to – Don't you point that thing at me!" **(2)** the fat boy shouted before slowly backing away from the wooden stick the other boy had taken out and was pointing straight at the fat boy's heart. The slow backing out steadily turned into a stumble before the fat boy turned tail and ran away as fast as his pudgy legs could carry him.

Dartz could only stare at the wooden stick that the boy was now pointing at thin air, before lowering it and stowing it away in the back of his jeans. Why had the fat boy been so frightened of it? It was, after all, only a simple, wooden stick. Before he could decide what to do – should he go and talk to the boy now or wait for a later moment? – the former Atlantean King froze. The warm night temperatures had just dropped frighteningly fast and the cold that now surrounded the area was intense, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and his brain go on high alert. Luckily he had decided to wear his long, white, leather trench coat, as well as his white, knee-high boots and white baggy pants, so the unexpected cold did not affect him physically.

Looking up he saw the boy was carefully listening for something, his eyes closed and the wooden stick from before was out again. Following the boy's example, Dartz started to listen for anything out of the normal and that's when he heard it – someone or something was drawing long, hoarse, rattling breaths **(3)**, which made golden eyes snap open with a horrible jolt of dread – something bad was about to happen, he knew it. Without even thinking about his actions, the blue-haired man quickly walked to where the boy was standing and pushed the startled, confused and wary teenager behind himself, turning towards the direction from which the sound appeared to be coming from.

The teen didn't say a single word as he and Dartz stood in silence. After a few minutes of waiting, a towering, hooded figure came smoothly gliding in their direction, hovering over the ground, no feet visible beneath its robes. **(4)** Dartz had never seen a creature like that, although the boy's quickly drawn breath behind him suggested that the teenager had come across such a creature before. Fervently hoping that the pendant around his neck – a reminder for the Atlantean of his time as king – still contained some form of magic, Dartz closed his eyes and dived into his soul, searching for the source he had used to fuel the spells he had cast, whilst being possessed by the Orichalcos.

The blue-haired man was surprised to discover that he could still locate it and that instead of the green colour it had been it had turned a blinding white. Drawing power from it, he channeled it through his entire body. With a fierce glare directed at the quickly approaching creature, Dartz directed the power he could feel gathering in his hands towards the creature. To his immense surprise, a familiar circle with an oddly-shaped, 6-pointed star appeared beneath the creature, which had frozen mid-air. For a moment Dartz thought that he had somehow inadvertedly revived the Seal of Orichalcos, but then he noticed the seal's colour – instead of green, it was white. A huge beam of white burst forth from the seal and engulfed the dark creature, before disappearing as suddenly as it had appeared and only leaving a small piece of the strange creature's tattered cloak floating to the ground.

Breathing a sigh of relief and smiling, Dartz turned around and was met with the astonished face of the boy he had – successfully – protected. The smile faded slightly when he saw that the boy was shivering and in his mind there was but one option. Putting one had on the boys shoulder and the other on the boy's back, Dartz started to guide him out of the park.

"I am going to bring you back to my house. You look as if you are about to collapse from either exhaustion or cold!" Dartz said to the teen, who continued to stare at him.

"W-Who are you?" the teenager slightly stuttered. He was wearing only a T-Shirt and a pair of shorts, with a ragged pair of trainers on his feet. That had definitely not been enough for the sudden chilling temperatures a few moments ago.

"My name is Dartz. And what is your name?" the Atlantean replied, an amused smile on his face as he noticed the teenager staring slightly at his eyes and hair.

"Harry. Harry Potter" came the short reply from the teen, though Dartz suspected it might be because of the exhaustion, rather than being a sign of impoliteness. He would have been exhausted as well, if he hadn't used the energy within him so many times before.

The two "winners" from the encounter with the strange creature were now outside the park and Dartz was leading the boy – no, _Harry_ – to his house. He wondered how Raphael and Valon would react…

_**Harry's thoughts**_

What the hell just happened! First I feel the presence of a Dementor and then a weird guy suddenly appears and…and…and disintegrates that foul creature! Where the heck is he leading me now anyway? Can I even trust the guy? I mean, look at him! He has aqua-coloured hair and golden eyes! Then again, as far as I know, anything evil can't possibly have golden eyes – it's a pure colour, a light colour. No, for now I will trust the guy. Wait, what did he say his name was? Dartz…What a strange name. On the other hand, I've heard stranger names before. Hey, that's n6 Privet Drive we are going to! How the heck could I NOT notice such an unusual neighbour? Then again, Petunia is the one who keeps up with stuff like that…I bet that Dudley already went and told her about me taking out my wand. Wait a second, does this mean that this man saw my wand as well? Wait, he saw the Dementor! He HAS to be a wizard? But I didn't see any sign of recognition on his face when I told him my name and he did not use a wand to disintegrate – is that even possible? – the Dementor…So…he's not a wizard? Then what the heck is he! I also wonder what that power of his is – I mean, for Christ's sake, he DISINTEGRATED a Dementor! Oh, wait, we're at the door. Better pay attention again…

_**End of Harry's thoughts**_

_**YGOxHP**_

Well, that was the first chapter. Rather short, I'll admit it, but I still wasn't much of a writer when I wrote this story.^_^

**(1)** – **(4)** are all excerpts from J.K.'s "Order of the Phoenix", except I made small alterations to them to better fit the flow of the story, as it were.^_^


	2. Chapter 2: New Family

Hello, my dear readers!^_^

I just knew that my tactic would eventually work! *strikes triumphant pose* After encountering a nasty Writer's Block with this story, I moved onto a new one and then another one…and then another one…and then another one. Then, when I finished writing my newest story's ("A Different Destiny") newest chapter, I had a stroke of inspiration! So, here is the result – chapter 2.^_^

But before I give the stage to this awesome chapter, I have got an important note: I made a mistake in the last chapter. This story takes place after Harry's 4th year, not 5th, my mistake.^_^

And now – enjoy reading chapter 2!^_^

_**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Harry potter or Yu-Gi-OH. Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling and I don't know who YGO belong to – only that it isn't me *pouts*

_**YGOxHP**_

_**Chapter 2: New Family**_

_**Dartz POV**_

After opening the door with his key, Dartz lead Harry straight to the kitchen where he immediately went on to make a hot chocolate for both of them. He had found out that hot chocolate always warmed him up during cold winter nights. With the temperatures during their confrontation with that creature, it might as well have been winter.

It appeared that Valon had gone out and Raphael had still not come back from his date. Dartz hoped that the blond-haired man was enjoying himself – he deserved some happiness after everything the Atlantean had put him through. He was also hoping that he could, in some way, atone for the wrongs he had committed by helping people like Valon, Alistair and Raphael. It was obvious to Dartz that Harry was one such person even though the boy was doing everything he could to hide it. The eyes are the window to a person's soul and Harry's soul revealed a deeply-set sadness and an immeasurable anguish. Something tragic must have recently happened in the teenager's life. The aqua-haired Atlantean was determined to find out what. Actually, he was determined to discover this boy's entire story.

Giving the black-haired teen one of the two mugs filled with the warm drink, the golden-eyed man took a seat across from his guest and observed the boy for a few seconds. The shivering had died down and some colour had returned to the boy's pale complexion. He was staring at the mug.

"Drink it. I find it warms me up better than anything else and you, my young friend, most definitely need to warm up" he told the teenager, who had jumped slightly at hearing his voice.

"Thank you" Harry mumbled.

"Harry, back at the park…you seemed to know what that creature was" Dartz started, clearly waiting for an answer despite not having asked a question. After looking at his "protector" suspiciously for a few minutes, Harry seemed to come to a decision.

"It was a Dementor – a creature that protects the Wizarding prison Azkaban. I have a question of my own: you are clearly not a wizard, but how did you…no, what did you do to that Dementor?" Green eyes looked warily at the Atlantean.

"You are right in that I am not a wizard. Before I answer your question, though, Harry, I would like to know what is tearing your soul apart" Dartz answered, bluntly stating his wish to know more about the teenager.

Harry was taken aback. This man just suddenly appears in the park, saves him and then wants to know about him? Well, at least he is straightforward…unlike his traitorous former friends. Closing his eyes, Harry clearly recalled the events of his 4th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After having been named the fourth champion in the Triwizard Tournament everyone had, in short, turned on him. They actually hated him for something he did not do. But no, who would listen to him? No one. Except this strange man. Harry snorted – a person he had met barely half an hour ago would listen to him and his side of the story, whilst his friends of 3 or 4 years would not. Well, he had nothing to loose by telling this man his story. He was tired of having to hide everything; sick of never telling anyone about his treatment at the Dursleys' house. It was time to come out with the truth, come what may.

Dartz's frown after hearing about the death, no, the murder of Harry's parents had only deepened as the teenager told him his life's story up to the confrontation with the Dementor. The teen's situation was worse than he had thought. However, that was not the only cause for the aqua-haired man's worry: he had noticed that throughout the entirety of Harry's stay at Hogwarts, the headmaster – one Albus Dumbledore – the green-eyed boy had always been in some kind of danger that the old man could have prevented.

In Harry's first year, the obstacles guarding the Philosopher's stone were easily bypassed by a trio of eleven-year-olds, whilst they should have protected the stone from Voldemort, an experienced dark wizard. In the boy's second year it was the basilisk –the old man could have easily deduced that Slytherin's beast was a snake and, what's more, that it was a basilisk. After all, if a 12-year-old witch could figure it out, shouldn't an over 100-year-old man as well? Harry's third year had brought a small smile to Dartz's face – the boy had been reunited, if only shortly, with his godfather. According to the chocolate frog card of Dumbledore the boy had given him, the headmaster of Hogwarts had the power to ask for a trial for Mr. Black and the man would have been found innocent of the crime he was framed for. Then, finally, there was the boy's recently completed fourth year – he had been forced to participate in a tournament that was only meant for 17-year-old students! Dartz was sure that it could have been entirely avoided. If it had, then this teenager would not have had to witness the death of a fellow student, as well as competitor and friend, or the resurrection of the man who had killed his parents and countless other innocent people. No, there was something fishy about Albus Dumbledore. As soon as he concluded all of this, Dartz told the green-eyed teenager of his suspicions about the old man.

Harry was shocked, to say the least. He had never really thought about it from that point of view and he was furious at the conclusion he himself had come to after hearing Dartz's observations – the headmaster, a man h had respected and admired, had been using him, lying to him and had been manipulating him.

"Calm down, Harry" Dartz ordered the angry teenager "I don't even know if my theory is right" the golden-eyed man continued.

"Regardless of whether it is right or not, I have let too many people control my life until now. Now…Now I am going to take control and the first step to achieving this is to go to Gringotts" the black-haired teenager replied, green eyes filled with determination.

"Gringotts? The Wizarding bank? Why would you…Ah, you want to see if the old man has been meddling with your account. Good move" the Atlantean praised the boy, chuckling at seeing a small blush cover his cheeks "I shall accompany you there, of course" he continued.

"What? But why?" came Harry's confused question.

"As a sort of pseudo-guardian, I suppose", Dartz answered, an idea quickly forming in his head as he carefully observed Harry's eyes. The emerald green eyes had a strange glint in them as two emotions battled for dominance: longing and hope.

"Thank you", the 15-year-old replied before sipping his slightly cooled down hot chocolate, a small smile on his face. Seeing the boy's smile made Dartz's decision easier.

"Harry, since your life with your relatives is obviously awful and you clearly despise them as much as they do you, what would you think of being adopted? By me, I mean" the Atlantean nervously proposed. He wasn't certain, if he would be a good guardian, but he knew that he would treat the boy better than those Dursley's did. Besides, if the black-haired teenager were to agree, then maybe Dartz could begin to atone for his wrongdoings.

The smile that appeared on the teenager's face and the look of hope and happiness in the boy's emerald green eyes was all the aqua-haired man needed to see to know that he had just gained a new family member.

_**Harry's POV**_

Harry had never felt so happy before. The pain of being abandoned by his best friends and depressing thoughts of never being accepted anywhere instantly evaporated. This man, this complete strange he had met only 2 hours ago, had just proposed to adopt him. The black-haired boy would have been suspicious as to whether the man had some sort of ulterior motive, but his golden eyes revealed is thoughts quite clearly: the man cared for Harry's well-being, even if he had known him only for a couple of hours, and sincerely wanted to offer the boy a place, which he could call home. Not even trying to suppress the utter joy that filled him, the teenager leapt up from his chair and embraced the man.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you…" Harry repeatedly murmured, as for the first time in his life he cried not tears of pain and misery, but tears of joy and happiness.

A pair of comfortingly strong arms wrapped around the weeping teenager.

_**Valon POV**_

"Hey, I've been waiting for hours for you, mate!" exclaimed a certain brown-haired teenager, his Australian accent showing through even more clearly due to his worry. Valon stopped in his tracks when he entered the kitchen and was greeted by the sight of Dartz with a shaking teenager in his arms. Almost immediately the Australian teen felt a sort of kinship with the black-haired boy. Unbeknownst to him, Harry was experiencing the same sensation.

"What's your name, kid?" he asked, tilting his head slightly to the right in a childish manner, catching a glimpse of an emerald green eye looking at him. The sniffling teenager extricated himself from the Atlantean's embrace and turned around towards the inquisitive brown-haired boy.

"Harry. What's your name?" Harry asked in the same childish tone and with the same tilt of his head.

"Valon. Are you an orphan?" Valon proceeded with his questioning. He needed to know why he felt as if the kid was like a brother to him.

"Yeah, Do you get into fights?" the black-haired teenager continued.

"Sure do. Did you have to fight to survive?" Valon questioned.

"Yeah. Were your parents killed?" Harry inquired.

"They were. Did you beat…" Valon started.

"…the guy who did it?" Harry finished.

"Yes!" they both answered, wide grins displayed on both their faces.

_**Dartz POV**_

Dartz could only blink in fascination as he followed the two boy's conversation like a tennis match, his head turning from one to the other. Those two were acting the way Dartz imagine long lost brothers or even twins would. This only supported his thoughts that Harry belonged in their little, rag-tag family.

That night in that kitchen there wasn't a person who was not either smiling or grinning.

_**YGOxHP**_

Well, I hope you enjoyed reading it! Please leave reviews!^_^


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